She did not minimize those barriers, but she also did not reduce her own story to a story only about barriers.

She was an inventor who had invented things.

That was the core of how she understood herself.

The growth of recognition since her death in 2006 has continued.

Her story appears in books about Black American inventors, in educational materials about women in STEM, in the programming of museums that are working to make their collections and narratives more inclusive.

The Inventors Hall of Fame has recognized her.